REVIEW: Girls Only: The Secret Comedy of Women

It's all about the ladies in this SNL-style comedy about what it really means to be a woman

BY ELLEN BURKHARDT

Published: January 20, 2012

Men, stay away from the New Century Theatre for a couple months. Until March 18, Hennepin Theatre Trust’s newest stage is being run by women. Not just any women: bold, witty, uninhibited, loud, intelligent, brutally honest women. Armed with jokes about puberty and songs about relationships (told you you’d want to stay at bay, guys), Nicole Fenstad and Melanie Wehrmacher are bringing your awkward teen years back in full force with Girls Only: The Secret Comedy of Women.

This sketch comedy/improvisation/musical/puppet show/multimedia whirlwind of a show is impressively funny. At its most basic level, Girls Only is simply a play about two friends reminiscing about their childhoods. But really it's much more than that. Fenstad and Wehrmacher combine scripted sketches with improvised segments (randomly grabbing purses from the audience and using them—and their contents—as props) to form a fast-paced, laugh-out-loud, physical SNL-style production. In one moment they’re paranoid sex-ed teachers scaring (and scarring) you with stories about the terrifying world of boys, and the next they’re rereading sections of their diaries, laughing at what made the cut. Audience participation is part of the shtick, so be prepared to play along.

If you’re uncomfortable with menstruation jokes or the thought of watching a "Ballet of Pantyhoes," join the men in waiting in the car. But if you’re looking to laugh at and relive those wonderfully awkward teen years for a couple hours, grab your girlfriends and make a night of it. Just be sure to clean out your purse beforehand—you never know if you’ll be the chosen one.